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The Wild Wild West wasn’t as widely rebroadcast as other cult TV series from the 1960s, so it’s a particular delight to see this marvelously weird and strangely hypnotic genre hodgepodge so well treated on the DVD format. CBS DVD and Paramount’s The Wild Wild West: The Second Season seven-disc box set gives us all 28, one-hour color episodes from this singularly unique series, making it must-see viewing for western, spy, science fiction, fantasy, and vintage TV fans (with a few other genres thrown in for good measure, as well).

I suspect, considering the outsized, fantasy elements of its stories, the emphasis on action and adventure, its early start time (7:30 PM) and its Friday night timeslot, that CBS saw The Wild Wild West as probably nothing more than an elaborate kiddie show - and one that was in trouble in the ratings this second season. Benefitting from its Friday 9 o’clock anchor show, Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C., the second most popular series for the 1965-66 season, as well as Hogan’s Heroes at 8:30, which finished ninth for the year, The Wild Wild West’s ratings for its first season were a healthy, but unspectacular 23rd (in a three-way tie with The Jackie Gleason Show and The Virginian). Unfortunately, the 1966-67 season saw Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C. moved to Wednesday nights, and without this powerful ratings getter, The Wild Wild West sank in the Nielsen’s. Hogan’s Heroes, The Wild Wild West’s follow-up show, also saw its ratings slide, dropping down to 18th for the year. And with heavy competition from NBC’s popular new kiddie show Tarzan (it would wind up 27th for the year in the Nielsen’s), The Wild Wild West, even after a move to shoot in color this season, dropped out of the Top Thirty in 1966-67, and would limp along for only two more years before being canceled in 1969.

It’s really a shame that the innovative, highly imaginative The Wild Wild West was pigeon holed as a kiddie show by the network, and stuck in such an early time slot. Watching it today, over forty years later, The Wild Wild West plays as well as CBS’ ostensibly “adult” spy jaunt Mission: Impossible, which premiered during The Wild Wild West’s second season, and which ran for seven successful years. Far from coming off as juvenile in tone, The Wild Wild West is an altogether surreal mixture of traditional western, espionage, fantasy, science fiction, comedy, and even supernatural genre elements that forms a most unusual viewing experience. The basic structure of the stories doesn’t vary much. James West (Robert Conrad) and Artemus Gordon (Ross Martin) are the countries’ finest Secret Service agents. Under direct orders from President Ulysses S. Grant through their high-tech wireless telegraph, West and Gordon crisscross the Old West in their luxuriously appointed private railway train, arriving at seemingly innocuous trouble spots where they invariably encounter some fantastical scheme to control the U.S. and the world by various assassins, maniacal geniuses, and nefarious criminal organizations.

The spy duo are nicely matched in their complimentary skills. West and Gordon are both accomplished in the gentlemanly arts of armed and unarmed combat, as well as proficient in their use (and sometimes invention) of anachronistic, high-tech gadgets that certainly appear plausible, but much like similar technologies in H.G. Wells’ novels, are fictitious to the 1870s time period. While Gordon is a master of disguises (he often times fools even West), which comes in handy when West is captured by the villains, West is the suave, deadpan, handsome charmer who often gets the girl, and whose athletic skills are legendary. Meeting these “Second Industrial Revolution” James Bonds on the field of battle are an impressive rogue’s gallery of half-insane criminals bent on subverting law and order in America, chief among them Dr. Miguelito Loveless (Michael Dunn), an evil genius whose small stature is more than compensated by his outsized, malignant need to create chaos for Jim and Arte.

I have a few shadowy childhood memories of watching The Wild Wild West reruns, but only a few things standout: the celebrated animated credit sequence, West’s fabulous train, and a rather frightening black and white image of Dr. Loveless screaming at West in one episode (Michael Dunn was such a phenomenally talented actor). But it’s not a show that really stuck with me, probably because it didn’t repeat over and over again in syndication, as Gilligan’s Island or The Andy Griffith Show did. That’s why it’s such a distinct pleasure to rediscover The Wild Wild West: The Second Season on DVD. It’s hard to describe, but there is some kind of strange, weird pull exerted on the viewer here. TV series have a sustained tone, an atmosphere if you will, that exists outside the specifics of each episode. You can feel it, in well integrated shows. And they don’t have to necessarily be “serious” dramas for that tone to come through: Gilligan’s Island has its own, distinct tone, just as The Sopranos memorably has. A good indication of The Wild Wild West: The Second Season unique tone is the fact that all the episodes in the series are titled The Night of the…. The Wild Wild West has a nighttime, otherworldly feel to it that lends a somewhat sinister, understated, creepy edge to the more outlandish moments of whimsy and comic book action.

Obviously, there was a lot of thought given to how the series as a whole would come off. Some critics have said that the switch to color made the show more “camp,” a term I particularly despise. But I’ve heard that same note of disdain for other series, particularly The Avengers and The Saint; it’s as if black and white is more valid, in some way, than garish, “common” color. On the contrary, The Wild Wild West switch to color this second season only ups the odd, quirky look of the show, and dovetails nicely in with the increasingly bizarre schemes Jim and Arte find themselves thwarting. There aren’t any false notes in The Wild Wild West’s execution, from its evocative production design (I particularly love the Pop and Op Art touches that sneak in among the sagebrush), to its imaginative, clever scripting (any one of the stories here are more exciting than most big screen movies out there this year), to the pitch-perfect acting.

Conrad in particular is worthy of note. Giving what has to be one of the most controlled performances in an outwardly action-oriented series, Conrad is a model of kabuki-like stillness and grace when he’s in delivering his amusingly written lines. “Deadpan” doesn’t quite cover his delivery, because there’s an active glint in his eyes, and the slightest trace of a sneer at his lips, that suggests action at the drop of a hat, but it’s a surprising, left-turn performance for this kind of action fare. It’s ironic and amused, and yet at the same time, deadly quiet and serious - in other words, it’s the embodiment of the show’s very own tone. His insistence on doing his own stunts lends credibility to his performance; it’s a lot easier to believe he’s actually James West when the camera, in one unedited take, shows him running and leaping to grasp the railing of a second story balcony, whereupon he effortlessly pulls himself up, turning to the camera to make sure you know that he, Robert Conrad, did that and not some stuntman (there’s one amazing shot in this season where Conrad barely misses being stomped to death by a horse).

Martin is the perfect compliment to Conrad. More openly warm and humorous, more willing to exaggerate due to his role’s requirement of often disappearing into broad, comic disguises, Martin is the perfect humanistic ying to Conrad’s cooly calculated yang. It’s not surprising that when two made-for-TV movies in the late 70s went well enough for there to be talk of a new series, it was abandoned when Martin unexpectedly died; you can’t have James West without Artemus Gordon. Thankfully, the gawd-awful movie adaptation (lets not even name names) tanked, and we were spared more sequels or even worse, a series retread. The Wild Wild West is TV perfection just the way it is; there’s no need to retool it or reboot it.

Here are the 28, one hour episodes of the seven-disc box land a express, The Wild Wild West: The Second Condition, as described on their slimcases:

DISC ONE:

The Night of the Eccentrics
Jim and Arte uncover a murderous scheme to assassinate Mexican President Juarez. When Jim refuses to help execute the plan, the conspirators try to frame him for the murder.

The Night of the Golden Cobra

Jim and Arte go undercover to investigate strange happenings in the Pawnee Indian reservation area. They discover a greedy plot to scare the Indians off their valuable land.

The Night of the Raven

Jim and Arte face their archrival Dr. Loveless, who has a diabolical plan to shrink the human world so he can become its ruler.

The Night of the Big Blast

A fanatical Doctor converts two corpses into duplicates of Jim and Arte, then sends them on a mission to kill President Grant and his Cabinet.

DISC TWO:

The Night of the Returning Dead

Jim and Arte must uncover the truth behind the appearance of a mysterious, bullet-immune Confederate nightrider who promises complete destruction unless a murderer confesses to his dastardly crime.

The Night of the Flying Pie Plate
Jim and Arte uncover a scam involving three beautiful women posing as green skinned Venusians, who intend to steal four hundred pounds of gold from naive townspeople to fuel their spaceship.

The Night of the Poisonous Posey
Jim and Arte uncover a plot in Justice, Nevada, to unite the abilities of the world’s most notorious criminal minds.

The Night of the Bottomless Pit
Jim and Arte are assigned to find and free a fellow agent unjustly imprisoned on Devil’s Island.

DISC THREE:

The Night of the Watery Death

Jim and Arte uncover a plot that will create an underwater city in the Pacific Ocean that will control shipping around the world.

The Night of the Green Terror

Jim and Arte must stop Dr. Loveless’s twisted plan to explode a deadly balloon over Washington, creating total chaos so his army of Indians can move in and take over.

The Night of the Ready-Made Corpse

Jim and Arte are assigned to protect a Latin dictator. When he is assassinated, they uncover a major blackmailing operation is behind the crime.

The Night of the Man-Eating House

Jim and Arte transport a mentally unbalanced prisoner to a hospital. As his condition worsens, they discover he has a sick plan to return Texas to Spanish rule by infecting the state with a deadly plague.

DISC FOUR:

The Night of the Skulls

Jim pretends to kill Arte. Now, posing as a wanted man, Jim infiltrates a murderous clan, where he uncovers a plot to assassinate President Grant.

The Night of the Infernal Machine
Jim and Arte discover that a criminal plot to eliminate federal judges was actually devised by one of the judges himself to insure his appointment to the Supreme Court.

The Night of the Lord of Limbo

When a magician makes Arte disappear, Jim must travel to another dimension to find him. What his journey back in time reveals is a plot to change the outcome of the Civil War.

The Night of the Tottering Tontine

Jim and Arte must protect a key member of a wealthy investment group whose surviving member stand to inherit the group’s sizable assets.

DISC FIVE:

The Night of the Feathered Fury
Jim and Arte seek information about an old nemesis, only to get involved in the theft of a toy chicken containing a mystical Philosopher’s Stone, which turns anything near it into gold.

The Night of the Gypsy Peril
Jim and Arte infiltrate a gypsy camp and join their circus to unravel an extortion plot against the U.S. involving a stolen elephant.

The Night of the Tartar

Jim and Arte are ordered to deliver a Russian prisoner in exchange for an American Vice-Council being held captive. They discover the Russian is involved in a shakedown plot involving wealthy Russian immigrants.

The Night of the Vicious Valentine

Jim and Arte investigate the Alphabet Murders, a plot devised by a ruthless matchmaker, who marries her girls off to wealthy industrialists then kills them for their money and power.

DISC SIX:

The Night of the Brain
Jim and Arte investigate the early predictions of a friend’s death. Before they can warn the next victim, they discover a plot underway to murder all the world leaders and replace them with look-alikes.

The Night of the Deadly Bubble
Jim and Arte investigate a plot to destroy all the world’s coastal towns as punishment for polluting the seas. When they dig deeper, they discover another plot to poison the populations’ water supply.

The Night of the Surreal McCoy

Deadly art comes to life, as Jim and Arte face Dr. Loveless’s scheme to plant murderers inside his forged paintings, then release them to kill world leaders.

The Night of the Colonel’s Ghost

Jim and Arte escort President Grant to a statue dedication in what they discover is a ghost town. The few remaining townspeople lay claim to hidden gold, which is actually concealed inside the statue itself.

DISC SEVEN:

The Night of the Deadly Blossom
Jim and Arte must stop a deadly plot to kill a Hawaiian King on the high seas.

The Night of the Cadre
Jim and Arte blow the whistle on a plot devised by a criminal mastermind to implant a franconium crystal in President Grant’s head, to control him, so he can become dictator of the U.S..

The Night of the Wolf

Jim and Arte are assigned to protect a newly crowned King. But first, they must stop a kidnaping plot to force him to renounce his throne.

The Night of the Bogus Bandits

Jim and Arte discover Dr. Loveless is training men to take over key federal establishments so he can become dictator of the U.S..

The DVD:

The Video:
The full-screen video image for The Wild Wild West: The Second Season is clean and sharply focused, with a minimal amount of dirt and scratches to the original elements. No transfer problems arose.

The Audio:
The Dolby Digital English mono soundtrack accurately represents the original broadcast presentation.

The Extras:
Unfortunately, unlike the boxed set for the first season, The Wild Wild West: The Second Season DVD set contains no extras — that’s a pity.

Final Thoughts:
Strikingly original, with a otherworldly, ominous pull to its comic book action, The Wild Wild West: The Second Season mixes elements from the spy, western, science fiction, fantasy, comedy, and the supernatural genres with abandon, and creates one of the most compelling, entertaining series to come out of the 1960s. I highly recommend The Wild Wild West: The Second Season.

---

Paul Mavis is an internationally published film and television historian, a member of the Online Film Critics Society, and the author of The Espionage Filmography.

This documentary follows the rise of the “krump” subculture in Los Angeles, a form of acrobatic dancing performed in bumpkin makeup. Beginning as entertainment for children’s parties, “krumping” soon develops into a widespread activity - and an alternative to gang membership - with dozens of town clown groups competing against each other to excel.

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As I sit here preparing this column, the Oscars have not aired yet, but I must admit there’s not a high likelihood that I will be watching them when they come on.  Most years I’ll watch a few minutes here or there, if I’m interested to see who wins an award in real time. 

The ceremony is drawn out and boring in my opinion, and requires sitting through too many commercials to warrant watching from start to finish.  I care about the winners of various awards, just not enough to suffer through the tedium.  I’m sure I’ll have some feedback for next week’s column though on the winners and losers.  

Appearing in theaters this week post-Oscars are the Iraq war thriller “Green Zone,” the romantic drama “Remember Me,” the sophomoric humor of “She’s Out of My League,” the family comedy “Our Family Wedding,” and the Korean suspense film “Mother.” 

GREEN ZONE

Uncovering faulty intelligence in the war on terror causes a U.S. Army officer (Matt Damon) to go rogue as he seeks out Weapons of Mass Destruction in an unstable area.

“The Bourne Ultimatum” director Paul Greengrass helms this fast paced action thriller.  Brian Helgeland, the scribe for “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3,” pens the screenplay, which is based on a book by Rajiv Chandrasekaran.

Watch "Green Domain Trailer"

WHO SHOULD SEE IT:  Fans of the Greengrass/Damon collaboration on “The Bourne Supremacy” and “The Bourne Ultimatum” should be the first ones in line to see this film.  If you appreciate Greengrass’s ability to build suspense and Matt Damon’s chops as an action star then you should check out “Green Zone.” 

REMEMBER ME

This romantic drama focuses on two young lovers: Tyler (Robert Pattinson) a troubled young man whose family has been rocked by his brother’s suicide and Ally (Emilie De Ravin) who has been living each day its fullest after witnessing her mother’s murder. 

With a twenty year career in television, Allen Coulter makes his first foray into directing feature length films in this drama.  Newcomer Will Fetters writes the screenplay for “Remember Me.”     

WHO SHOULD SEE IT:  Viewers looking for a serious romantic drama and coming-of-age story should see this film.  If you like Robert Pattinson in the “Twilight” series but you want to see him in something different then “Remember Me” is your opportunity.  

SHE’S OUT OF MY LEAGUE

An average guy (Jay Baruchel) lets his insecurities get in the way of his blossoming relationship with a beautiful woman (Alice Eve) he believes is out of his league. 

Jim Field Smith moves past shorts to directing his first feature length movie with “She’s Out of My League.”  The screenplay is written by John Morris and Sean Anders, the team behind 2008’s raunchy comedy “Sex Drive” and this year’s “Hot Tub Time Machine.”

WHO SHOULD SEE IT:  Audiences that enjoy sophomoric jokes and awkward moments are the ones this comedy is made for.  If you enjoyed Jay Baruchel in goofy films like “Knocked Up” and “Tropic Thunder,” but you thought he did not have large enough parts, then you will have a chance to see him in a lead role for a change.  

OUR FAMILY WEDDING

The preparation for this couple’s wedding is hilarious and stressful, especially since their feuding fathers (Forest Whitaker and Carlos Mencia) try to set aside their differences to help make their children’s ceremony a special day. 

African American filmmaker Rick Famuyiwa directs this family comedy.  Famuyiwa helped write the screenplay for the picture with Wayne Conley and Malcom Spellman.

WHO SHOULD SEE IT: People who like African American comedies are the primary ones who should see this film.  However if you’re just looking for a funny family-safe movie, then you should see it as well. 

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A mother begins her own investigation into the murder of a young woman in the hopes of exonerating her son, who she knows to be innocent of the grisly crime.

The man behind 2006’s “The Host,” Joon-ho Bong, directs this intense and mysterious thriller.  Eun-kyo Park pens “Mother’s” screenplay with the assistance of Wun-kyo Park and Joon-ho Bong.

WHO SHOULD SEE IT: Foreign film aficionados will be interested in seeing this dark crime thriller.  If you like stories where nontraditional investigators embark on a dangerous mission to investigate a crime, then you will probably love “Mother.”

Story by Starpulse contributing writer Evan Crean, a movie trivia guru and trailer addict with a practically photographic memory of actors and directors. Get a first look at the movies premiering each week, which ones will be worth your $10, which ones you should wait to rent and which ones aren't worth your time.

Jonathan Demme has earnest more attention to Haiti than any other American filmmaker has given a beleaguered Third Happy realm. After producing four documentaries on the Caribbean realm, Demme makes his most intercontinental expression as conductor of “The Agronomist,” a affecting portrait of the last Haitian transistor temperament who campaigned as far as something democracy, Jean Dominique. Pic melds a great cause and Dominique’s impotent to charisma with care using experiment with from nine years of filming and reporting. Venice and Toronto preems will backlash-start major visibility against Demme’s most politically committed film, with vid and instructive markets on the perspective.

Casual observers may think the helmer’s primary interest in Haiti is its music (”The Silence of the Lambs,” for one, ends with a Haitian slant, at least on the soundtrack), but Demme has actually been tracking the country’s tumultuous politics for many years. Dominique is the ideal subject for Demme as he is not only articulate and entertaining but a spokesperson for popular opposition to a string of thuggish regimes, and a symbol of what freedom of the press actually means.

Picking up roughly where “Haiti: Killing the Dream” (which Demme exec-produced) left off with the 1991 overthrow of elected President Jean-Claude Aristide, saga shows Dominique and wife Michele Montas under siege at their radio station, Radio Haiti-Inter , from goon squads involved with the coup.

Pic’s first proper interview with Dominique begins in July 1993 in Gotham, where he and Montas were then in exile. He expresses his characteristic blend of bitter rage and optimism about his homeland’s prospects and dictatorial legacy, before docu takes a pause to provide viewers with extensive background on the coupleand Haitian history.

Dominique and Montas both came from privileged homes, and Dominique’s work in agriculture brought him into direct contact in the 1960s with the feudalistic nature of the island nation’s farming system in which peasants have historically been powerless. His interest in land reform brought him into direct conflict with the “Papa Doc” Duvalier regime, landing him in prison.

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Dominique became something of a cinephile while in Parisian exile, and formed a cine-club back home while co-directing “Mais Je Suis Belle,” which teased beauty pageants.

But Dominique’s work as a radio communicator forms the heart of the pic. Purchasing Radio Haiti-Inter and turning it into the country’s only independently operated station flew in the face of what the Duvalier dictatorships of Papa and Baby Doc would typically permit. It’s doubtful that without Montas’ crucial support and partnership Dominique would have made Radio Haiti into the voice of democratic opposition, which gradually tilled the soil for the sprouting of Aristide’s reform movement.

During years of lensing, Demme’s camera was granted open access to the station’s studio, where Dominique and Montas are seen regularly reporting and commenting on various issues. The station becomes symbolic of freedom: After a brief period in which reform seemed possible due to direct pressure from the Carter Administration, the army clamped down and attacked Radio Haiti a month after Reagan’s 1980 election.

Dominique’s story is thus marked by rising and falling fortunes resulting from U.S. involvement. He directly benefits from Aristide’s 1990 electoral triumph, suffers during the coup and then returns to broadcast again when the Clinton Administration forces Aristide’s foes to step down.

Pic is loaded with wonderful talking-heads interviews with the spry, urbane Dominique, who bears a remarkable resemblance to the great French actor Jean-Louis Barrault. Amidst the tension and constant uncertainty of his position, he expresses a joie de vivre and irreverence that’s completely disarming and undermines any polemical harshness. Montas projects a serene strength that seems to be the stuff of decades’ of struggle.

The account of Dominique’s April 2000 assassination is genuinely tragic and moving. Currently, broadcasting at Radio Haiti-Inter has been shut down, with Montas in U.S. exile.

Vid-to-film transfer is decent, given that the early ’90s video segments were shot in that period’s low-end standard. Archival footage and photos form a rich backdrop. As usual with a Demme production, music selections embolden the images.

Driven by a personal struggle against anti-Semitism, devout Jewish student and runner Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross) became the first humankind in seven centuries to dart curved the Cambridge courtyard perimeter in 46 seconds. In Scotland, the son of a missionary Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson) has been burning up the track and has earned a noted as The Flying Scotsman. The two men are selected to represent Britain at the 1924 Paris Olympics, but a question of reliance may check a specific from competing. 

Michael Collins is a brilliant epic tale whose implications are felt even today.
Liam Neeson stars as Michael Collins, the Irish revolutionary in the
early 20th century. After a series of unsuccessful everyday warfare
attacks, the Irish Republican Army, under Collins' instruction, begins
to learn the unconventional tactics of up to date guerilla warfare.
However, will this dramatic a step at a time, crucial to Collins' fight conducive to a
free republic at the time, extermination up hurting him in the long course?
In the meantime, he has to great amount with his two friends: President of the Irish
Republic Eamon De Valera (Alan Rickman), who has the political smarts that
Collins lacks, and who resents the limelight that Collins' actions steal.
And Harry Boland (Aidan Quinn), Collins' right-present to cuffs, but both love the same
woman, Collection Kiernan (Julia Roberts). Liam Neeson does a superb job
as the title character who must separate to terms with the pandora's box he opened.
The supporting cast is also not counting, particularly Alan Rickman as De Valera.
Kitty Kiernan is the only character that can't quite stand on her own,
in the direction of she's acclimatized more as a plot emblem than as a person. Director Neil Jordan
manages to hit all the lawful buttons as he guides this epic to success.
My just qualm with Michael Collins is that it jumps a bit to hastily into
the middle of the action. There's very brief historical background given
to the motion picture, and some issues (particularly the role of religion) are barely
touched upon. Those without knowledge of these fussy times and events
may go places a be friendly lost at times, and no doubt could have used a larger perspective
on the conflict. In what way, that aside, Michael Collins is an amazing whip into shape,
examining an interesting theme, and pulling it off masterfully.

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I have a very prominently memory of one Saturday morning - it must comprise been 1973 or 1974 - when I was switching around the channels looking for a cartoon to watch. My older brothers instantly yelled inoperative for me to a stop to, and demise it on what turned in view to be Mission: Charming!, starring a then-anonymous (in the States) Rick Springfield. I had no suspicion then why they wanted to care for a kiddie put on, but their strange, smooth-eyed fascination (accompanied by many exclamations of “Whoa!” and “What the criticism?”) with this Filmation classic certainly caught my attention. Of course, watching this new Ink and Stain DVD release of Task: Magic! - The Unreduced Series, it’s not hard to figure extinguished why they without hesitation seized on this cartoon. Designed and passionate for the duration of maximum big cheese-trip effect, Profession: Magic! - The Complete Series’s psychedelic, flaked-prohibited stoner beg is as the same as ever, with the added value of nostalgic be attractive to for all of us who grew up loving the distinctive Filmation look.

Mission: Magic! tells the story of Miss Tickle (voice of Lola Fisher), a hip young school teacher whose class of curious students form The Adventurers’ Club. Vinnie and Socks (voice of Howard Morris), Harvey and Franklin (Lane Scheimer), and Kim and Carol (Erika Scheimer) meet in Miss Tickle’s classroom, where through a magic gramophone machine, rock star Rick Springfield (himself) calls out to them, telling them about their next adventure. Miss Tickle then brings to life her Egyptian cat statue name Tut-Tut (Oh Tut-Tut, cat of ancient lore, ‘Tis time to draw the magic door), and taking a piece of chalk, draws a magic door on the chalkboard, which immediately transports the class to a magic land where Rick Springfield awaits. There, the gang gets into many nonsensical adventures, featuring their enemy Mondran, as well as Dr. Manta, Doctor Daguerreotype, and The Land of Backwards. During the Adventurers’ mission, Rick always has time for a rocking song, before the group is transported back to class, where clueless Principal Samuels (Howard Morris) usually awaits.

Directed by animation legend Hal Sutherland, and written by Marc Richards, Mission: Magic! - The Complete Series is a real time capsule from early 1970s Saturday morning cartooning. Along with Hanna-Barbera and DePatie-Freleng, Filmation was one of the three animation giants of that time period, and any kid growing up then can instantly recognize the distinctive styles of each house (other big Filmation shows include Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, The Brady Kids, Star Trek, and a personal favorite, Will the Real Jerry Lewis Please Sit Down). Filmation’s groovy, boldly colored designs, influenced by the explosion of Pop and Op Art of the 1960s, made the psychedelic designs of Peter Max and other trippy poster artwork mainstream for kids; your parents may not have wanted your older brothers to have that drug poster on their wall, but watching Mission: Magic! was okay. And while no one at Filmation would say that these shows were designed with any thought in mind of tripping out their viewers, I would imagine that quite a few kids remember as I do their older siblings - who wouldn’t watch most kiddie shows on a bet - paying particularly close attention to shows like Mission: Magic! and H. R. Pufnstuf. In between nodding off on the couch, of course.

Other highlights of the Filmation house style include endlessly repeated animation sequences (which saved tons on the budget), a similarity between characterizations from cartoon to cartoon (when the kids in Mission: Magic! walk through a scene in black silhouette, they look a whole lot like the Cosby kids), a laugh track, which we always enjoyed (it made it seem like the cartoons were funnier, and they felt more expensive, more like the prime-time network shows), and plenty of songs. Rick Springfield, who was specifically requested to star in Mission: Magic! by ABC, had just become a teen idol in Australia, and ABC, hoping to make some dough on an animated singing star (just as they did with the fictional Archies and The Brady Kids), brought him in and let him compose all his own songs. And to be honest, they’re pretty catchy here. Not being exactly what you’d call a Rick Springfield fan (Jesse’s Girl has to be one of the most annoying hits of the ’80s), I was surprised at how much fun his short but tuneful little rock-outs are here.

The series, which was only produced for one year, played for another year on ABC, but because it was so specifically “of its time,” it rarely showed up again on TV. So its return on DVD is particularly welcome. The stories, often coming from a fantasy/science fiction angle, are frequently quite imaginative, if a little repetitious, and the writing, while not exactly Shakespeare, at least keeps things moving along, with something new every minute or so to attract the eye in the episodes’ fun, heady designs. Fans of Filmation, as well as those younger kids who remember the show (because they weren’t high like their older brothers and sisters) will definitely want to return to Miss Tickle’s class.

Here are the 16, twenty-minute (the show ran within a scheduled 25 minute program period) episodes of the two-disc box set, Mission: Magic! - The Complete Series, as described on a colorful, trivia-packed tri-fold booklet included in the set:

DISC ONE: SIDE A

The Land of Backwards
When the Adventurers’ Club goes to The Land of Backwards, they find that everything is reversed. Rick asks them to help the famous backward poet Shelley Percy, but they aren’t award that the adventure will involve the jewel thief Big Billy and his henchman!
Rick sings You Better Think Twice About It.

Modran

The magic door in the chalkboard apparently works both ways as Modran and his henchmen Bell, Booke and Kendall come through it. Modran is stealing gold so that he can be declared the world’s greatest magician. Miss Tickle and the Club go to the Land of Prestidigitation, where she will compete against Modran at the Festival of Magic, and Rick will face a giant blue genie….
Rick sings Catch Me.

Dissonia

Rick summons the group to the land of Dissonia, where music doesn’t exist! Miss Tickle and the kids discover that it’s all the fault of the villainous Captain Coda (and his sidekicks Sharp and Flatte), who wants to use his Music Eliminator to eradicate all melodies!
Rick sings Love is the Key.

Land of Hyde and Goseek
When the Magic Gramophone brings a message from Harry Horde, the Club goes to the twin magic lands of Hyde and Goseek. There, they find Rick in disguise, raiding parties of Fuzzy Wuzzies, a search for the rare oil called Lanolinobidium, and Colonel Kadiddle, the last Goseekan.
Rick sings If We Help One Another.

The City Inside the Earth

Miss Tickle takes the Club on a field trip to Carlsbad Caverns when they get a distress call from Rick who’s at the City inside the Earth. There, with gravity going crazy, they find out that great quantities of valuable metals have been disappearing from the surface of the Earth…and Professor Fahrenheit and his henchman Simon might have something to do with all of the anomalies.
Rick sings Yes I Am.

DISC ONE: SIDE B

2600 A.D.

Rick summons the Adventurers’ Club to the far future of 2600 A.D. where Omni, a super intelligent robot, is in control of weather, environment, and almost everything else. But even Omni — and sidekicks Glop and Glep - need help when an asteroid heads for Earth. Can magic and music help science to save humanity?
Rick sings You Can’t Judge a Book By Its Cover.

Something Fishy
Rick summons the Club to help him stop the evil Dr. Manta — with Flip and Finn — from stealing the coral that helps an underwater city to survive.
Rick sings Free and Easy.

Giant Steppes
Rick is trapped in the palace of the gigantic Madame Mammoth, and the Club comes to his rescue in the Land of Giant-Sized People. Can they free Rick and help restore Bill Behemoth as the rightful ruler of the land…especially against Madame Mammoth’s magical powers?
Rick sings You Can Really Do It (If You Try).

Statue of Limitations
When someone steals Rodeen’s statue “The Contemplator,” Rick comes to the real world, and the gang all goes to Paris, France, to find the thieves. Which of the three magical suspects stole it: Pierre Lehoax, The Artful Codger, or Trix Legrande?
Rick sings What Am I Going to Do.

Download Blood and Bone Full Movie blu ray

Will the Real Rick Springfield Please Stand Up?

A villain named The Chameleon disguises himself as Rick and comes to the real world through the blackboard. Unaware of the deception, Miss Tickle helps “Rick” round up the Adventurers’ Club. Can the real Rick stop the fake “Rick” before it’s too late?
Rick sings It’s Driving Me Crazy.

DISC TWO: SIDE A

Doctor Astro

Doctor Astro and Charts Chumley are stealing priceless artifacts representing the signs of the Zodiac; in his own world, Astro can use magic to make them real! Rick, Miss Tickle and the Adventurers’ Club go to recover the stolen items from the Valley of the Signs, but they run into trouble when the zodiac symbols come to life and pursue them!
Rick sings We’re Gonna Have a Good Time.

Doctor Daguerreotype

Some of the world’s greatest landmarks have been stolen by Doctor Daguerreotype and his sidekicks Rhett and Ina. It seems that his magic camera can steal anything by placing it into a photograph! When the Adventurers’ Club is turned into a photograph as well, Rick and Miss Tickle must save the day in a sepia-toned castle that defies the laws of physics!
Rick sings On the Other Side.

Nephren

Rick contacts the Club, asking Miss Tickle to use her magic to fix the crumbling City of Antiquities. Meanwhile Nephren, magical Queen of the Nile returns to life in the real world, and restores her assistants, Ahken and Baak, to life as well. She soon decides that Miss Tickle is her foe, as only one of them can be the most powerful female magic user of all time.
Rick sings I Know That It’s Magic.

Modran Returns

When Modran lures the Adventurers’ Club into the other world, he steals Tut-Tut and traps them there. Splitting into two groups in a realm of multiple magic doors, the gang finds themselves facing a robot, a hungry plant, and a hall of mirrors!
Rick sings If We Help One Another.

Horse Feathers

Rick invites the Club to go with him to the Rodeo of the Worlds where he’s going to be the emcee. There, a competition rages between grizzled old Bronco Busby, female champ Ma Mudfoot, and Spurs Spangles, the gaudiest cowboy. Cue the stangaroo riding contest, the chuck wagon race, and…the prize money thievery?
Rick sings Welcome To The Rodeo, and Miss Tickle sings Sing Me a Song.

DISC TWO: SIDE B

A Light Mystery

Someone in the Land of Lights has stolen a giant electrical generator from the real world. Is it Madame Marquee, Count Celestra, or Baron Borealis? Rick and the Adventurers’ Club use music and magic to investigate!
Rick sings Starlight, Starbright.

The DVD:

The Video:
The DVD box for Mission: Magic! - The Complete Series mentions several times that these cartoons have been digitally restored. That very well may be; they do look quite clean for thirty-five-year-old shorts. But there may have been problems with the original source materials. Often, the whiter parts of the animation (such as Rick’s suit and face) are washed out, with details only coming in as the shot fades down into another shot. It’s pretty contrasty, actually. As well, the picture is at times, fairly soft. Now I understand that there’s a story going around that all old Filmation stuff has been taken from PAL masters, and that the original source materials don’t exist. If this is true, it may help explain the look of these transfers. But not to get crazy, these still look better than when you saw them as a kid. And again, I hate flipper discs — they scratch.

The Audio:
The Dolby Digital English 2.0 stereo sound mix is adequate, but common — it’s Rick Springfield! Where’s the 5.1?

The Extras:
There are some nice extras for Mission: Magic! - The Complete Series. First, a very brief interview with producer Lou Scheimer and his daughter, voice actor Erika Scheimer. Next, there’s a fun 32 minute look at the history of Filmation Studios — nice. There are also some cool DVD-ROM features, where you can peruse the episode scripts, as well as a complete set of model sheets. There’s an image gallery (pretty lame), and some cool trailers for other fun, vintage Filmation shows, like Flash Gordon and She-Ra: Princess of Power.

Final Thoughts:

A safe, fun, animated head-trip for kids who grew up on the funky Filmation house style, Mission: Magic! - The Complete Series is a surprisingly entertaining trip-out with some catchy Rick Springfield tunes, imaginative scripts, psychedelic backgrounds, and that wacky Filmation laugh track. Fans will want to go back; Rick Springfield completists will snatch it up, and animation buffs may want it for their collections. With some cool extras, I recommend Mission: Magic! - The Complete Series.

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Paul Mavis is an internationally published film and television historian, a member of the Online Film Critics Society, and the author of The Espionage Filmography.

The only thematic novelty in “Defying Sedateness,” John Keitel’s modestly approving feature directorial debut, is that its coming-out story takes place at a university frat house. Nonetheless, made with a benign deal of charm, this aptly titled drama is a seemly gamble towards campy unshackle and is forced to please gay men, particularly young ones. Pic should effortlessly travel the global gay festival circuit.

The endearingly naive “Defying Gravity” is undoubtedly a personal film; the writer-director is close in age to his main characters, half a dozen white students sharing a frat house on an unnamed campus (pic was shot at USC, where Keitel was a graduate film student).

Affable and cute, Griff (Daniel Chilson), the ultimate frat boy, spends a hot night with frat brother Pete (Don Handfield), who lives off-campus. But he can’t face the notion — and the responsibility — that he’s gay, still continuing a flirtatious affair with Gretchen (Nicki Lynn), a fetching sorority girl who doesn’t excite him much. Griff’s best friend, the very straight Todd (Niklaus Lange), is also unaware of his buddy’s emerging sexual orientation, though he senses that their relationship is changing.

An argument one night between Pete and Griff in a West Hollywood coffee shop ends badly. Unbeknownst to Griff, later that night, Pete becomes a victim of gay-bashing that sends him to the hospital. Griff finds out about the incident from a TV news report, and recalls seeing a suspicious-looking truck following Pete into a dark alley.

Rest of the overly familiar drama is devoted to Griff’s dual dilemma of whether to report the case to the police (a theme used in numerous youth movies, most recently in “All Over Me”) and put himself on the line, and when to tell Todd his “secret.” The melodramatic plot gets some necessary tension when it becomes clear that members of Griff’s frat house were involved in the bashing, which results in a moralistic confrontation, eventually forcing him to begin a new, more mature life on his own.

What helps this meller overcome its stock situations is a gallery of credible and positive characters. Prominent among them is Denetra (Linna Carter), Griff’s African-American classmate, who’s confused about her own sexuality and becomes a trusted confidante during his moral crisis.Todd is a more sensitive and understanding straight buddy than was the norm in most gay movies until the 1990s.

Low-budget pic, reportedly shot in only 13 days, is directed by Keitel with a good measure of honesty and taste. There are no great performances (three lead thesps are no more than OK), but overall the cast is handsome and appealing. Young gay men will relate to the heartfelt tale, whereas older ones will grin with deja vu, particularly when Griff tries to convince himself that his sexual attraction to men “is only a phase.”